


Grape Left Hook

by Gleennui



Category: Glee
Genre: Baseball, Fuckurt Trope Bingo, Gen, Kid Fic, Pre-Canon, Sworn enemies, bubble gum
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-08-24
Updated: 2015-08-24
Packaged: 2018-04-16 22:52:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,067
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4643025
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Gleennui/pseuds/Gleennui
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When Finn Hudson is nine, dumb stupid Noah Puckerman hits a home run off him in Little League and <i>laughs</i>.  The punch Finn throws, he thinks, is well-deserved.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Grape Left Hook

**Author's Note:**

> Fuckurt Trope Bingo Square: Sworn Enemies

The first time Puck and Finn fight on the baseball field is halfway through Little League the summer Finn is nine. Finn’s team has been in first place for three weeks, but they’re playing the Lane’s Moving and Storage Blue Jays, who are only one game back. 

Finn’s pitching, because his coach is awesome and says that Finn is their “secret weapon,” but Finn doesn’t feel like any kind of weapon today, secret or otherwise, because the Blue Jays have already scored two runs off him. Finn’s mom gives him a thumbs-up from her lawn chair on the first base side, but Finn just frowns to himself, looking over his shoulder at the tying run on first base and then frowning even harder when he sees who’s up to bat.

Dumb stupid Noah Puckerman is grinning at him from the batter’s box, wiggling his bat over home plate. Dumb stupid Noah Puckerman who had three hits against them last time and knocked over their catcher and _didn’t even say ‘sorry’_. 

Dumb stupid Noah Puckerman doesn’t waste any time being even more dumb and stupid when he hits Finn’s first pitch a mile, way over the head of Jimmy Cordero in left field. Finn kicks at the mound dirt and yells into his glove as all he can do is watch dumb stupid Noah Puckerman run around the bases. 

Then dumb stupid Noah Puckerman crosses home plate and _laughs_. He looks right at Finn and laughs at him, and Finn loses it. 

“Stop it! Stop it, stop it!” Finn charges at Noah, who dodges out of the way. “Stop _laughing at me!_ ”

“Hey! Hudson, buddy!” Finn feels a big hand clap him on the shoulder as his coach steps between them. “I want to see good sportsmanship, all right? Puckerman is a good hitter. Sometimes that just happens.” 

“No, he’s NOT a good hitter. He’s dumb and stupid and I’m not sorry!” 

“ _You’re_ dumb and stupid and so is your dumb and stupid face!” 

Finn feels tears spring to his eyes, but he scowls until he feels them go away. It’s not _fair_. Stupid Noah with his stupid home run and the stupid way he laughed at Finn when he crossed home plate and now Finn has to be a _good sportsman_?

“You take that back!” 

“No!” Noah sticks his tongue out at Finn. “You’re just mad because you’re a sucky pitcher!” 

Finn clenches his jaw and runs right at Noah. His shoulder lands at Noah’s chest, and it sends them both to the ground, fists flying. He gets a good jab to Noah’s jaw before Noah socks him right in the gut, sending Finn rolling on his back on the first baseline, gasping for air. He hears footsteps coming toward them, and then his mother’s voice right over him a second later. 

“Finn Hudson!” She sounds really really angry, and Finn scrambles to his feet, almost tripping over his cleat laces. “What has gotten into you?” She hands Finn his glove and water bottle and grabs his arm in the way she does when Finn knows he’s going to be in big trouble as soon as they get home. 

Finn apologizes to Noah, but he glares at Noah so he knows Finn doesn’t really mean it, and then Finn’s mom marches him over to Noah’s mom, who’s holding a baby, and Finn apologizes to her, too, except this time he actually means it. 

Finn’s mom keeps her grip on Finn’s arm all the way to the car, and Finn can hear Puck’s protests--probably to his own mom--from the field all the way until Finn’s buckled in the car and they’re driving away. 

 

The don’t play the Blue Jays for another two weeks, and Finn’s grumpy all day the day of the game, right up until they get to field and Finn sees the lineup, and then he’s even grumpier. Coach Dan has him playing right field, and Finn bites his lip before the tears come again, this time out of disappointment. 

The field they’re playing on that night has the cool wooden dugouts, which Finn loves anyway, but he especially loves them today, because he can go and sit behind theirs and pull at grass and grumble until he feels better. Finn’s mom says that sometimes he needs “sulking time,” and that’s what Finn’s going to do. 

Finn’s got a good pile of grass going next to him, some of it with satisfying clumps of dirt still connected, when he feels someone walk up next to him and stand there. Finn ignores whoever it is, because it’s not his mom or Coach, and it’s not time for batting practice anyway. But the person doesn’t go away, and instead Finn feels the person sit down next to him. 

“I wasn’t laughing at you.” 

Finn looks over. Stupid dumb Noah Puckerman is looking down at the grass, picking at a blade with his nails. Finn almost gets up to find another sulking place, but then Noah starts talking again. 

“I was just really excited. That was the first game my mom went to my game since my baby sister was born. She got to see me hit a home run!” Noah looks up at Finn. “I mean, I’m sorry if was off you though.” He shrugs. 

“Oh.” Finn squirms, feeling kind of weird and bad. “It went really far.”   
“You thought so?” Noah grins. “Cool.” 

“Yeah.” Finn’s grinning back before he realizes it. “It was cool.” 

“Do you like grape gum?” Noah digs into his pockets. “I got it at Ray’s.” 

“I’ve never had it!” Finn holds out his hand and Noah puts a half-smushed piece on his palm. “I like grape popsicles, though.” 

“Me too!” Noah pops at least a couple pieces in his mouth. “Maybe we’ll have some after the game.” 

“If our team has some, I’ll share with you,” Finn offers.

“Cool. Thanks.” Noah grins at him, and Finn giggles at his purple teeth. “I’m Puck.” 

“Finn.” Finn holds his hand out like his mom always makes him do to adults, and Puck doesn’t look at him funny or anything, just shakes his hand right back.

“I might hit another home run today, Finn,” Puck says, popping a bubble and wrinkling his nose. Finn can’t help but laugh. 

“I know,” Finn shrugs, and pops a bubble back. “I’ll give you a grape popsicle anyway.”


End file.
